


Bambi

by Briana_Dubs



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel (Comics), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Cute, Deer, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, I submitted this prompt on tumblr but I couldn't stop myself from writing it myself, I was inspired by the five deer that have been coming to my house and eating all my bird seed, Loki and Tony fall in love, Loki and Tony have a cute discussion, Loki in an apron, Loki joins the party!, M/M, Tony took a vacation, but really quickly because i'm lazy, changing sides, dramatic music, fight me, it's just a slightly off universe alteration that adds a bit more fluff, not compliant with the movies, somebody make them go away
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-22
Updated: 2019-01-22
Packaged: 2019-10-14 15:22:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17511050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Briana_Dubs/pseuds/Briana_Dubs
Summary: He didn’t fight as Loki took hold of his shoulders and lifted him back to his feet. He had gone dead weight, but because Loki was basically exactly like Thor in strength, it probably didn’t make a difference. Still, it was nice hearing Loki huff when he let himself flop again after he let go of his shoulders. He caught him and grumbled something before going and setting Tony down on one of the lounge chairs nearby. Tony grinned up at him once he was comfy. “Thanks, Bam-“ he paused mid nickname and took a second before laughing at himself.“Bambi! Oh my god, of course! You literally were Bambi! That’s too rich.”





	Bambi

It wasn’t his decision to go. If anyone had asked, Tony would have said he tried his hardest not to. Taking a vacation was stupid. It never ended up actually being a vacation. Some evil supervillain always attacked him about three days in and then the rest of his time away was always spent recovering from the battle. Any time people told him he needed a vacation he fought tooth and nail. So, no, Tony Stark did _not_ want to go on this little trip.

To be fair, though, Pepper made him go. And Pepper could be a very frightening woman when she wanted to. She and Rhodey both could be scary as hell if needed. He wasn’t sure if it was lucky or unlucky that they both came with him on this trip. They had his back, but they were also at risk if anyone evil came a-knocking.

“Oh, Tony, Rhodey, look!” Pepper was standing by the window with her morning cup of coffee. (Some weird concoction that Rhodey knew how to make that tasted really sweet and made Tony sneeze.) “Look at the deer!”

The little, but not really little, cottage they were staying in for their vacation was tucked away in the woods in an undisclosed location in upstate New York. It had one entire wall of windows that looked out from the kitchen and entertainment area. The windows had one glass door that led out to a massive balcony, but Pepper hadn’t made a move toward it yet. She just stood in the middle of the windows watching a small group of white tailed deer moseying about in the flatter grass in front of the balcony.

Tony and Rhodey both made their way to her side to look with her. Rhodey whistled as he observed the small group. “Wow, look at the antlers on that buck. That’s gotta be eighteen points at least.”

“Points?” Tony cocked his head in Rhodey’s direction, peering around Pepper.

Rhodey made horn shapes with his hands above his own head. “The pointy ends of the antlers. Points.”

“Oh.” Tony frowned. “Do you hunt?”

“Not really, but some of the others at boot camp did when I was first starting out.”

“Sh!” Pepper lightly smacked Rhodey’s shoulder. “Don’t scare them!”

The group, which consisted of four does and the one lone buck, were all just grazing along the yard until one noticed a birdfeeder the owner of the cottage must have set up and the does all started trying to eat out of it. The buck stopped grazing while they all focused on the feeder and raised its head to survey the area. It turned its head toward the three of them inside the house and stared at them. Unblinking.

“We should throw them some apples,” Pepper whispered.

“Why?” Tony asked with a bit of a pout. “They’re gonna get the bird seed in like ten seconds anyway.”

Pepper huffed. “Because they’re pretty and skittish and I wanna be nice to them.” She walked away from the two of them after that and went to the fridge. Tony had of course made sure it was completely stocked for their stay.

“They are kinda peaceful to watch, don’t you think?” Rhodey asked, smiling at Tony.

Tony, though, didn’t smile. He just kept frowning and now stared back at the buck in the yard. “That thing is looking at me.”

Rhodey shook his head and rolled his eyes. “Tones, it’s a deer. They stare at everything they think is a threat.”

“It’s not blinking.”

“It’s a deer, Tony!” Rhodey called over his shoulder, walking back toward the couch in the room to watch some television. “If you’re gonna get paranoid over every little thing you see I’m going to blindfold you!”

Tony waved his hand absently and continued looking out the window. “Blink, motherfucker,” he whispered, scowling out at the buck. “ _Blink_.”

His angry muttering was interrupted by Pepper coming back with a bowl of apple slices. She shoved one bowl into his hands and held another in her own. “Come on, let’s go feed ‘em.”

“Won’t they just bolt if we open the door?”

“Not if we’re quiet and slow, now shoosh!” And they crept out onto the balcony. All five of the deer were trained on them now. Ten eyes staring at them as they tiptoed in the fresh air. Ears twitching, tails flicking, the deer looked seconds from sprinting away from the two of them. Pepper tossed a slice just a little ways in front of the balcony, and three of the does jumped backwards in fear. Tony just watched her for a minute, waiting to see what she would do next. She didn’t throw another slice out until one of the deer took a few steps forward, sniffing the air. When she tossed the next slice one of the does actually did run and hide in the bushes. The others all twitched again, clearly nervous.

“You throw one,” she whispered to Tony.

Picking out a slice, Tony did a light underhand toss, and let the piece plop on the grass five feet in front of the glass of the balcony. The deer all flinched again. He was about ready to tell Pepper they should just go back inside when the buck made a move. Lowering his head, the buck made a few tentative steps toward the slice Tony had thrown. It sniffed at the fruit for a moment before looking up at them again, watching them, and lipping the piece into his mouth. Tony very distinctly heard Pepper let out a little happy squeak that her gift had been accepted.

“Throw him another!”

She didn’t have to tell him twice. He tossed the next piece right in front of the buck. It bent and picked that one up too and stood there munching. Tony kept throwing him slices of the apple and eventually the does started creeping forward when they understood that there was no threat. Tony had stopped looking at the deer for a minute and watched the way Pepper’s face lit up. Her smile stretched across her face and she seemed to glow with her happiness. That was enough for him. Seeing her happy and calm for once made this whole trip worth it.

In the middle of her throwing out handfuls of fruit, Pepper stopped, eyes wide and mouth open. When Tony cocked his head at her in question, she motioned with her elbow toward him. He looked down at himself first, thinking maybe he spilled juice all over himself, but he saw nothing. So he lifted his head and gasped as he saw the buck he had been feeding was only about a foot and a half away from him now. It was just standing there staring at him and sniffing the air. It took Tony a moment to get his head back together. “Oh!” He had stopped throwing out food. The stupid thing was probably just trying to get to the bowl in his hands.

The whole feeding only lasted about ten minutes, but Pepper was thrilled, so there were no complaints from Tony’s end. She waved to the deer as they went back inside. Rhodey looked up at them and asked, “Did you name them?”

“Oh, yeah. Bambi, Bambi two, Bambi three—“ Tony’s joke was cut off as Pepper whacked his arm. Rhodey laughed at the sad pout he made.

“Now aren’t you glad you went on this vacation?”

“ _No_!” Tony whined. “I’m getting stalked by deer and abused by my friends!”

“Nothing like some time away from it all.” Rhodey winked at Tony and downed the last of his drink. “Come on, man, Thor’s on the news.”

“Whaddid he do?” Tony asked, grabbing a bag of pretzels and wandering back to the couch.

“Looks like he’s fighting a purple goo monster in Belarus or something.”

“Gross! Let’s watch!” And with that they spent the rest of their day watching footage of the god of thunder fighting a giant flubber monster. When it was getting dark out the three of them decided they should head to bed. Tony of course was last to get off the couch, only moving because Rhodey threatened to dump ice on him in the morning if he didn’t go to bed right now. Yawning and scratching at his stomach, Tony paused when something outside caught his eye.

“Is… is that… is that fucking deer still out there?” he walked over to the window and squinted through the glass. Rhodey and Pepper both stood back and watched him. “It is! That one with the big horns is still standing out there!”

Rhodey groaned. “It probably lives near here, Tony, will you let it go?”

“Fine, but if it’s still out there when we get up in the morning, I’m calling Fury on suspicion of being filmed.”

“Just go to bed, Tony.” Rhodey said, crossing his arms over his chest.

So, he went to bed.

And when he got up the deer was still outside. Not in the exact same spot, but it was still out there all the same.

“Rhodey it’s looking at me again.”

Flipping down his crossword puzzle, Rhodey let out a long, slow breath. “The lord is testing me,” he muttered to himself. Spinning around in his seat, he said, “Tony, it’s a deer. It eats grass and berries and it lives in a hut made of sticks, probably. It’s not a malicious villain out to get you, will you stop? Nobody knows we’re here, not even Shield!”

Tony stared back at the buck for a few more minutes before giving up with a wary sigh.

“We get that you didn’t get to go out and experience a lot when you were a kid, but trust me Tones, deer stare at things a lot.”

“I’ll try to remember that,” Tony mumbled, going to get himself some breakfast. “I’m just always on edge doing things like this. The minute I drop my guard is when something bad happens.”

Pepper set her hand on his shoulder and rubbed small circles. “You’re prepared, though,” she said, “You made sure to bring a suit, Rhodey brought a suit, heck you even brought one for me! If anything does happen, you’ll be ready for it.”

“Yeah, I guess…”

Tony did his best to ignore the nagging sensation he felt every time he looked outside and found the same deer standing there staring back at him. He really tried. But after an entire day he ended up so wound up and so on edge that about an hour after going to bed he threw the blankets he had across the room and stumbled out to the balcony in the dark. Tripping over himself, he gripped the edge of the glass railing and very nearly screamed. The stupid thing was _still_ out there!

“What!?” He shouted at it. “What do you want!? Can’t you just go take a fucking nap or something!?” He wanted to throw something. “Go away! Stop staring at me!” When all the deer did was twitch its ears at him, Tony let his head drop onto the railing with a loud groan. He stayed that way for a long while. He didn’t want to look up and see the stupid thing still standing there. He knew he was probably paranoid, but he couldn’t help it anymore. After getting betrayed so many times, one learns to stop being quite so trusting. Bad things seemed to follow him like the plague.

“Stark.” A voice he knew all too well sounded near him. Tony groaned again.

“I was fucking right. I knew something bad would happen while I was here. I was right, I was right, I was right…” Slowly lifting his head, he asked, “What do you want… Loki…?” Now he was confused. He was sure he had heard the evil sorcerer’s voice. He was positive he had. But he didn’t see him. Twisting his neck about and eventually doing a full body spin, Tony saw nobody but himself and the deer. “Loki?”

A familiar chuckle rang out in the quiet of the night time and Tony’s head snapped toward the deer. It slowly began to glow a soft green and its form melted into a more bipedal shape.

“FUCK,” Tony swore incredibly loudly, “Fuck, you were the god damn deer! I should have fucking known better, god damn it!!”

He started to scramble backwards toward the door, desperate to go and grab his suit to defend against an attack. He only managed a few steps before he tumbled over himself and fell onto his stomach. He started to move to lift himself back up, but froze when he saw a black boot come down next to his right shoulder. A pale hand lowered down and rested on the back of his wrist, then, and Tony swore again, just more quietly.

“I don’t threaten,” Loki said from above him, voice a quiet whisper. “I just wanted to talk.”

Normally Tony would scoff and try to break free, but he had experienced enough run ins with Loki that the idea of just talking seemed likely. Loki really seemed to enjoy taking moments out of battles to taunt and mock and start big discussions about science and magic and whatever else he felt like blathering about. Honestly, if anyone loved the sound of their own voice more than Tony did it was Loki.

With a sigh he made sure was louder than necessary, Tony went limp and flopped his head down on the ground. “If I _have_ to…” He didn’t fight as Loki took hold of his shoulders and lifted him back to his feet. He had gone dead weight, but because Loki was basically exactly like Thor in strength, it probably didn’t make a difference. Still, it was nice hearing Loki huff when he let himself flop again after he let go of his shoulders. He caught him and grumbled something before going and setting Tony down on one of the lounge chairs nearby. Tony grinned up at him once he was comfy. “Thanks, Bam-“ he paused mid nickname and took a second before laughing at himself.

“Bambi! Oh my god, of course! You literally _were_ Bambi! That’s too rich.” He moved his arms behind his head and grinned again at Loki. “Finally took my advice and looked up some of the typical Earthling phrases I’ve been using, eh?”

Loki, in response to all this, only rolled his eyes and pushed Tony’s legs out of his way before sitting down next to him.

“Whaddid you think of Bambi, anyway? Did it make you sad?”

“I was beside myself with emotion,” Loki said in a dull, flat tone.

Tony snickered. “I knew it. Ya big softie.” Kicking his feet back up, this time over Loki’s lap, Tony asked, “So what was it you wanted to talk about, Rock of Ages? Gonna tell me I had bed head this morning? Were the apples not to your godliness’ liking?”

Loki looked at Tony’s feet for a moment before turning his head back to him. “You were right to be nervous,” he started with, smiling a little when Tony sat up a little straighter. “You and your companions had been followed here.”

“By _you!_ ” Tony accused, pointing a finger in Loki’s face.

Loki pushed his hand out of the way easily and gave Tony the most unamused look he had seen since he told Pepper a joke about fruit punch. (In his defense, it was supposed to be a bad joke.) “Yes, obviously by me. Do you really think I just sit around doing nothing when I’m not causing mischief?”

“I dunno, I just assumed you were off keeping your hair luxurious and soft.”

“Focus, Stark,” Loki said, tapping him on the forehead. “I often keep an eye on you and your band of idiots. You get into more trouble than you’re worth, to be perfectly frank.”

“Gee, thanks.”

“Your good captain got himself crushed under three buildings not two months ago, if I recall. It certainly was lucky that his cries for help were heard by a nearby rescue crew, wasn’t it?” Tony’s face had gone into a scowl at the teasing, but it quickly softened at hearing that. “And you, if I’m remembering correctly, had gone and nearly drowned yourself half an Earth year ago. It must have been very fortunate for you that a pod of whales was swimming below you and carried you to the surface when they needed to breach.”

Now Tony was sitting completely upright, hands flat against the chair beside his thighs. “That was _you_!? You’re kidding me, I thought it was just complete dumb luck that got me out of that mess in the ocean!”

Loki rolled his eyes. “For a self-proclaimed genius you are not very observant.”

Tony frowned again. “Okay, so you’ve been helping us out. Why?”

The unamused look was back again. “If you were to die, where would I get my daily entertainment then? Thor? Please, I exhausted his usefulness before we were three centuries old.” Loki lifted a hand and gave Tony’s shin a couple pats. “You and your mortal friends are much more interesting.”

Yanking his leg away, Tony huffed. “Yeah, yeah, we’re your little play things, I get it.”

Loki turned his head to look into the cottage. “You three were followed here by not only your friends at Shield, but also by that fool that calls himself Doom.”

“Whaddid you do to them?”

“Made sure they lost their way and ended up following a car identical to your own a long, long way from here,” Loki replied, looking back at him now with a grin. “By the time they find you again, you will already be on your way back to the safety of your tower, I’m sure.”

Blinking a few more times than were appropriate, Tony found himself at a loss for words. It took him a good while of gaping like a fish before he finally formed words. “So… so you not only saved my ass from an ambush from Doom, but you also saved me the headache of being spied on by people who weren’t going to hurt me?” Loki nodded once, putting his hand on the leg Tony hadn’t pulled away from him.

“Why?” Tony asked, thoroughly confused. “I mean, I guess I understand not wanting Doom to have a go at me first, but Shield was just gonna be annoying and listen in on my conversations. They weren’t really a threat, just a nuisance. Why would you help me with them too?”

Loki shrugged. “Why not?” He turned his head to look into the cottage again. “I’ve expressed a few times now that among you and your Avengers that you are my favorite. Someone to have actual intellectual conversations with is a prize I don’t wish to lose. Why wouldn’t you get special treatment?”

“So… so you just like me because I’m smart?”

Now Loki rolled his eyes again. Honestly he was surprised his eyes didn’t get stuck like that he was doing it so much. “Hardly,” he said. “But without you there the chatter would be a lot less fun, I can guarantee that much.”

Tony pouted at him. “It’s still sounding like you just like me because I’m smart.”

“Would it make you feel better for me to tell you that you’re pretty?” Loki asked, face flat and eyes bored.

“Yes.”

“Then I think you’re very pretty, Stark.”

“You’re just saying that to make me feel better,” Tony huffed, crossing his arms over his chest and making a pouty face. He puffed his cheeks and stuck out his lower lip.

“Yes, that is literally what I just asked. I asked if it would make you feel better. That was exactly the point.”

Tony kept up the face. “It only makes me feel better if you really mean it.”

“Oh, for Norn’s sake,” Loki moved his hand to slide it down his face in exasperation. “Is this what you’re like all the time?”

“Well you said you like to watch me sometimes, so I would assume you already know that,” Tony bit back, arms still crossed but face eased up.

“This is why your friends hit you.”

“Hey!” Tony reached over and smacked at Loki’s chest. “Don’t be rude!” Loki hardly did more than glance when Tony hit him. Damn gods and their superior bodies. Probably didn’t even feel that. Fucker.

Grumbling, he let himself fall back against the chair back again. “So were the other deer even real?”

Loki looked a little surprised by the question. “Of course,” he said. “I told them I could get them some free food if they wanted to follow me for a while. Their previous buck hadn’t returned in some months. I think he’s probably dead.”

“Cheerful.”

“They’ll find another,” Loki dismissed, waving his hand. “They were happy for the temporary protection at least.”

“So you can talk to them, huh?” Loki nodded. “Can you do that with all animals when you shapeshift?”

“Most,” Loki answered easily. “There are some species of insect on this planet that have strange dialects and I cannot communicate well with them. There are also a few kinds of fish that are difficult.”

“Huh…” Tony hummed, thinking that over. “What do you do with elephants?” Loki cocked his head at the question. “I mean, elephants have a matriarchal society type thing. Females don’t let males that aren’t their own babies anywhere near the herd.”

“I change to female?” Loki sounded like it was more a question than answer.

“Oh yeah,” Tony laughed. “I forgot you do that sometimes. Duh. Stupid question.”

The small smile on Loki’s face was a lot nicer than the evil smirk he wore during fights, Tony thought. It felt more genuine. Less forced. Watching as Loki poked and tugged at his pant leg, Tony decided to ask a question that might be more risk than benefit.

“Loki, do you even like being evil?” The way Loki’s entire body froze up at the question made Tony sit up straight. “Hey, hey, don’t go all flight risk on me. It’s just a question. You don’t even have to answer it, kay?” He rested his hand on Loki’s shoulder and lowered his head to try and offer him a smile.

Loki glanced at his face for a moment before looking back down at Tony’s leg. His fingers were clutching the fabric of his sweatpants tight enough that Tony thought they might rip.

When the god spoke, his voice was quiet. “What would I do if I wasn’t?”

“Wha?”

“No one would accept me changing sides,” Loki said, lifting his gaze to look at him. “You ran for your life when you found out I was here. I would never be welcome… What else would I do?” His body looked tense as a bow. Like he could snap if pulled hard enough. “Do you expect me to hide? To do nothing? If I don’t cause any mischief, what would I do? Where would I go?”

Tony gave his shoulder a squeeze. “You could come with me.” He offered it up before he even thought about it. Loki’s shellshocked face made him take a moment to go over what he just said. Deciding he liked the idea, Tony nodded. “Yeah,” he said, smiling, “Yeah, you could come hang out with me. I’m sure you would be helpful. You could help me make new inventions. You could use magic to improve stuff I’ve already made. You and I could find a way to make a machine that recognizes magic like you do so I would know who was attacking us for once instead of just guessing.”

Loki’s eyes were wide and shone with moisture. Tony really hoped he wasn’t going to cry. “And what of your Avengers?”

“Well you and I both know Thor would be all for it,” Tony said, grinning when Loki let out the tiniest laugh. “And if the others don’t like it then at least I know I have him on my side.”

He put his other hand on Loki’s other shoulder and looked him right in the eyes. “You’ve helped us out a lot, Loki. Both out loud and obvious and in secret. Everyone saw you helping us when we got invaded by Skrulls last year. It was all over the news that you were the only villain that chose to help the Avengers. Everybody and their mother was talking about it.” He winked at Loki then. “You’d be surprised how fast people thought you were a good guy.”

Loki still looked nervous, but he did smile a little then. “We could start with your Pepper and Rhodes and see what they think?”

“Yeah, that’s good. Baby steps,” Tony agreed. He glanced out above the trees and could see the beginnings of pink rising over the tops. With a sigh, he said, “Well, we definitely missed bed time. Do you want some breakfast or something? I could really go for a few cups of coffee.”

When Pepper and Rhodey both got up a few hours later, they could smell that Tony was already awake. Coffee already made, the distinct smell of slightly burnt bacon, and the twinge of air freshener trying to cover up the burn smell.

“Should we be happy or worried that he’s already awake?” Pepper asked.

“Probably worried.” They both went down the hall and turned the corner, stopping when they saw Tony was not alone in the kitchen. “Yep, definitely worried.”

Tony turned his head when he heard Rhodey’s voice and beamed at the two of them. “Morning sleepyheads! Want scrambled eggs? I tried to do them sunny side up but they kinda got broken so now they’re scrambled.”

Rhodey took a few slow steps toward him. “Tones. Tony, man, you know I love you, but what the hell is happening here? Why is Loki in the kitchen here with you and… and wearing an apron??” Rhodey tilted his head, looking at Loki’s full body to observe the baby blue apron he had on.

“Oh!” Tony turned toward Loki a little bit and pointed at him with his spatula. “Turns out Dr. Doom had been following us up here and Loki sent him on a wild goose chase!” He grinned at his two friends then. “Our little deer friend from the other day was the resident God of Mischief checking up on us!” He nudged Loki out of his way then to get back to the stove to finish cooking. “Ain’t that sweet?”

Rhodey and Pepper both were now no longer staring at Tony. They both had their attention on Loki. “Doctor Doom, huh?” Rhodey asked, not looking quiet convinced.

“He had been very eager to,” Loki raised his hands and made air quotes as he said the next bit, “get the drop on Iron Man and show him who the real genius was.”

“Yeap, that sounds like Doom,” Rhodey said, letting his shoulders fall relaxed. “He’s cool, Pep. We can relax.”

Pepper rubbed her forehead a few times before letting out a loud sigh and throwing her hands up and walking toward the rest of the group. “All right, I guess.” She grabbed herself a cup and poured water from the kettle into it for tea. “Were you just using us for free food, then?” She asked, looking up at Loki.

Loki looked a little startled and he flicked his eyes to Tony for help. Tony only smiled up at him and motioned to Pepper. “Ah, no,” Loki finally answered, looking back over at her. “That was just a bit of fun, really…”

Pepper nodded and went to toss out her teabag. “And the apron? What’s up with that?”

“Anthony was wearing one…” Loki said, voice one step away from a murmur. “I just thought…”

“Did Tony tell you that you needed to wear one?” Rhodey asked between bites of toast. “He was yanking your chain if he did.”

“Hey!” Tony whined. “I didn’t do anything! Everybody always blames me!”

Loki chuckled at him then. It wasn’t enough to make Tony stop pouting, but it did shut him up. “I just thought I should try what he was doing.”

“Well it’s a good look on you,” Pepper said over the lip of her mug. “Domestic, I mean. The hair being tied up really finishes it off. Makes you look like a hipster husband.”

“Hipster is someone who likes old fashioned stuff to try and seem cooler,” Tony said to Loki.

“I know what it means,” Loki replied. “When I’ve disguised myself among the general populace I’ve been called it often enough.”

“I’d love to see you casual,” Tony said, scooping food onto plates for everyone. “More than just this, I mean. Like, I’m picturing dirty jeans, an old sweater, and maybe a loose man-bun.”

“Mm, dreamy,” Rhodey teased.

“Keep that up and there will be no bacon for you, Platypus.”

Rhodey put his hand against his heart. “Oh no, not the bacon, what will I ever do then?”

Once everyone was sitting down and eating, Tony spoke again. His mouth was full, so at first nobody understood him. He had to swallow and clear his throat before trying again. “I _said_ this is gonna be hilarious when we get back to the tower. Just imagine the look on everyone’s faces when we walk in with Loki!”

Loki looked a bit worried at that, but Rhodey actually laughed. “Steve’s probably gonna bust a blood vessel.”

Pepper smiled. “He’ll make up for my lack of a ‘Tony what were you thinking’ speech, I’m sure.”

“Probably,” Tony sighed. “Wait til you see it Loki. Cap turns into a total hard ass anytime I do anything he doesn’t like. It’s great.”

“It really doesn’t sound like it is.”

They only spent another day and a half at the cottage before they began driving back. Tony was at the wheel to start and Loki sat in the passenger seat. Pepper had offered it to him, which surprised even Tony. It was pretty nice, though. They were still all able to talk to each other and Jarvis, who Tony had installed into the car, only needed a couple seconds before he was greeting Loki as he would any other member of the team and changing his status from hostile to friendly. He notified them at one point that even the tower had been updated and no alarms would go off when Loki stepped inside with them.

“I’ve been inside before,” Loki said, sounding confused. “I never heard any alarms.”

“Tony usually has them muted,” Rhodey said.

Tony simply shrugged. “It’s true. They’re loud and annoying and I don’t really like them.”

“Earth’s greatest protector, huh?”

“Very funny, Rhodey.” Tony scowled into the rear view mirror.

After a few minutes Loki announced to the car that Doom had found them. “Too bad we’re like twelve minutes away from the tower,” Tony snickered. “Man, you were right Lokes. It really did take him almost the entire vacation to find us again.”

“He is a fool…”

“I like this guy, Tony, can we keep him?” Rhodey asked, leaning over the chairs. Tony stuck his tongue out at Rhodey in response.

“Nope. All mine. I’m not sharing.” Tony was too busy laughing to notice the surprised look on Loki’s face when he said that.

Stepping into the tower was a moment Tony wished he could have trademarked. Pepper and Rhodey walked in first and then Tony and Loki followed, both in the midst of an animated discussion, like absolutely nothing was wrong. Everyone fucking _jumped_ into fighting stances. Tony almost laughed too early. He had to hold it in.

“Everything okay, guys?” He asked instead.

Cap was the first one to speak. He did so as he tightened his pose further. “Tony, what is _he_ doing here?”

Tony blinked, turned to Loki like he was surprised, and then turned back to Steve. “He’s switching sides?”

Several weapons dropped at that, but only out of shock. “ _What_?”

Thor took a step forward, Mjolnir lowered. “Brother,” he began. “Is… is this true?”

Loki sighed a little over dramatically. “As much as it pains me to say it to you, Thor, yes. It is tr—oof!” His reply got squashed along with his body as Thor surged into a full on bear hug. He squished and squeezed Loki so tight Tony’s back hurt in sympathy.

“Tony, you can’t be serious.” Cap again. Here we go.

“Why not?” Tony asked. “Why _can’t_ I be serious, Steven?”

“You didn’t discuss this with any of the team!”

“He discussed it with me,” Rhodey offered. “Sounded pretty good. I said okay.”

Steve stumbled for a minute there. He floundered for a second with his response. “That’s still only just two of you! You can’t just make this kind of decision! How do we even know Loki won’t turn on us?!”

“If Loki turns, then he will have to face me,” Thor said, finally releasing Loki from the hug he trapped him with. “I stand by my brother, Steve. If you wish for a fight, it will be with me before it is with him.”

Tony smirked at Loki as he hobbled to his side. “Told ya Sparky would be happy.”

“I can’t feel my ribs,” Loki mumbled, holding his torso and leaning on Tony’s shoulder.

It took a long time before the others calmed down. For days the rest of the team was still tense around Loki. It was only after their first fight against another villain that they relaxed. Loki had been an absolute asset to the fight and it was over with minimal damage. And then any damage he saw, Loki used magic to fix. For once Tony didn’t have to foot a bill fixing somebody’s busted up house! It was enough that Tony actually pulled Loki down and gave him a big wet kiss on the cheek. Loki’s face had gone so red afterwards that it was hard to find him intimidating at all anymore.

Loki was an excellent member of the team. He was a marvelous teacher to any magic users that wanted to join or were already part of the Avengers, with his centuries of experience. His strength, like Thor’s, often helped the team out of tight pinches. He was smart enough to assist Tony and Bruce and anyone else who might want to invent with their projects, which was saying something because even Black Widow got confused trying to follow their thought processes. He was a great sparring partner for anyone on the team, even the super soldiers who often had to fight each other or Thor. They had grown so used to each other’s movements that adding Loki to the mix revealed how much he was desperately needed. He never stuck with one style of fighting. He always used different moves, different tactics, different techniques. So much so that for the first three weeks he was there, nobody could beat him in a fight.

Tony had just lost another fight against him and was lying on the mat gasping for air. “Are you all right?” Loki asked, kneeling down over him. “Did I jostle the reactor too much?”

Tony waved his hand. “Nah, nah.” He had to pause to keep breathing before he could talk again. “I’m jus- just really- foo, damn I’m out of breath. I’m just realizing how fucking out of shape I am.”

Loki scoffed down at him. “You are not,” he said. “You are just stagnated like the others. Used to the same fighting styles and underprepared.”

“Fuck off, I’m fat.”

Loki poked his stomach. “Mm, you are rather bloated still from your luncheon.”

“Hey!” Tony swatted his hand and whined loudly. “You’re not actually supposed to call me fat! That’s mean!”

Loki laughed at his outburst. “I was teasing, Stark.”

“Still mean…”

Loki patted his cheek. “Don’t worry, I still think you’re very pretty. Now get up so we can try again.”

Tony whined like a toddler. “Don’t wannaaaaaa~!” He flailed his arms around as Loki tried to grab them. “I don’t wanna, lemme lay here to die!”

“You are a child.” Loki eventually gave up on his hands and situated himself to grab Tony by the waist. Tony tried to squirm away, but Loki hefted him up onto his feet easily, as always.

“Not fair,” Tony pouted, flopping forward to rest his chin on Loki’s shoulder. “Stupid godly strength.” It took him a minute to notice that Loki hadn’t moved from how they were standing. He was just holding him there like that. He blinked a couple of times and carefully pulled himself back a little bit. “Lokes?”

When he pulled his head far enough back to see Loki’s face he saw how red he was. “You okay?” Loki refused to look at him. Tony, pursing his lips and furrowing his brow, looked at how they were for a moment before he understood. Loki’s hands were on his waist and his own arms were wrapped around Loki’s neck. To anyone outside it looked like a lover’s embrace. “Oh…”

Looking back at Loki’s still red face, Tony found himself smiling a little bit. So that was it? A little godly crush? Adorable.

Still smiling, Tony wiggled closer so he was pressed flush against Loki and rested his head back on his shoulder. He heard the sharp intake of air from the god, but he just cuddled him closer. “This is nice,” he eventually whispered.

“It… it is…?” Loki’s voice was quiet and a bit shaky.

Tony nodded a little and hummed. “Mmhmm… You make a nice headrest.” He heard Loki huff out a little laugh then, but he didn’t loosen his grip. “So I guess this time you really meant it when you called me pretty, huh?”

Loki’s body tensed for a moment before his hands slid to embrace Tony further. He turned his head and nuzzled into Tony’s hair then and whispered, “I always mean it.” Tony let out a pleased little hum when Loki’s lips brushed his neck. “I… often mean much more.”

Tony pressed a quick kiss to the bit of skin he could see of Loki’s neck. “Like what…?”

It took a minute before Loki answered. “I… Well… Often when I tell you that you’re reckless I mean that I want to protect you… keep you safe…” Tony let out that happy noise again. “When I tell you that you’re brilliant and I compliment your intellect, I mean that I’ve never met anyone with a mind like yours… One that complements my own so well… Like you were meant to be mine…”

Tony let out a noise that he would deny as a giggle until the day he died. “So you really do like me cuz I’m smart.” Loki nodded against him, placing a few gentle kisses of his own up Tony’s shoulder and neck.

“I like you too, Loki,” Tony said after a moment. “A lot, really… Probably too much.” He gave Loki a little bit of a squeeze. “I’m kind of selfish.”

“As am I…”

Tony chuckled a little at that. “If this… thing starts between us it’s either gonna go one of two ways, Lokes…”

Loki kissed just below his ear. “Tell me.”

“Either everything’s fine and perfect and we regret having waited so long to start, or it crashes and burns and we destroy each other…”

After a long moment of quiet, Loki spoke again. “I suppose that’s a risk we’ll have to be willing to take.” He finally pulled his head back to look at Tony. “Are… are you…?”

“Yeah,” Tony whispered. “Yeah, I’m willing.” Loki’s soft smile was all he needed and Tony moved to get rid of the little bit of space between them. He pressed his lips to Loki’s and let his eyes fall shut. It was a soft, sweet, gentle press of lips that Tony knew could get very heated if they let it go on too long. He let them slip apart and looked into Loki’s eyes.

“You okay if we skip the rest of the training for today, Bambi?”

“Absolutely.” And Loki kissed him again.

**Author's Note:**

> LET THEM BE HAPPY, MARVEL.
> 
> LET THEM BE HAPPY.


End file.
